Disposable absorbent article containing an essential oil

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to disposable absorbent articles containing an additive to control odors associated with bodily fluids. The invention is particularly useful in articles used to manage urine and menstrual fluids. The single additive provides both a pleasant aroma and antimicrobial activity.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates to a disposable absorbent articlecontaining a fragrant emitting and microbe inhibiting additive, andmethods for making the same. The additives are essential oils and/orderivatives thereof.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] There are two common forms of disposable articles that aredesigned to absorb menstrual fluids discharged from a female's cervix.The first article is intended to be wholly inserted into the vaginalcanal, and positioned near or against the cervical os. These articlesare commonly referred to as catemenial tampons, or simply tampons. Someof the disadvantages related to tampons are the following: they can beattributed to excessive vaginal drying, they have been associated withtoxic shock syndrome, they can be uncomfortable to insert and remove,especially on light flow days, and they have limited absorbing capacity,due to the regulations set by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

[0003] The second widely known and used article for collecting menstrualfluids is the sanitary napkin. This product is designed to be wornexternal to the vagina. Sanitary napkins can also be used to absorburine, due to the size and positioning against the perineum. The productcan be attached to the crotch of undergarments, attached directly to thevulvar region with body adhesives, and also worn partially or totallybetween the labia minora and majora. Many consumers choose to wearexternal absorbent articles because of their concern of toxic shocksyndrome, they have difficulty inserting and removing tampons, they havedifficulty wearing tampons, and they have a need for higher absorbingcapacity than that available from tampons. As with tampons however,there are disadvantages that have been voiced by consumers who rely onexternal absorbing articles for their fluid management needs.

[0004] One perceived disadvantage of external sanitary napkins is theirassociation with odors. Menstrual fluid contains a variety of substancesincluding proteins and lipids. Microbial action on proteins has beenrecognized as a source of malodor. Urine is another fluid that can beabsorbed by sanitary protection products, and microbial activity canform ammonia from urea in excreted urine. Consumers complain of notfeeling “fresh” during their period, and hence seek out products thatclaim to control odor issues.

[0005] There have been a number of technologies developed forcontrolling odors associated with bodily fluids; particularly thoseattributed to perspiration, menstrual fluid degradation products, urinedegradation products, and miscellaneous urine odors. Nearly all of thetechnologies can be placed into three main subcategories. The first isthe use of added materials to absorb or adsorb volatile odors in aneffort to restrict their release to the environment surrounding theconsumer. Materials or compositions that adsorb and/or absorb volatileodors include sodium bicarbonate, sodium salts or ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA), activated carbon, zeolites, and mixtures ofsodium bicarbonate, EDTA, and activated carbon. These approaches aredisclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,237,591 and 5,306,487. The second is theuse of masking materials, such as perfumes, and the third is the use ofsubstances to inhibit the production of bodily fluid degradationproducts. U.S. Pat. No. 5,733,272 discloses absorbent articlescontaining compositions of moisture-activated encapsulated perfumes andodor-controlling agents, including anti-microbial compounds.

[0006] The discussion thus far has highlighted technologies that arebelieved to remedy either malodors directly by inhibiting microbialactivity, thereby decreasing the level of urine and menses degradationproducts, or indirectly by suppressing or overcoming the odors as theyexist.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0007] The object of the present invention is to utilize a singleadditive in disposable absorbent articles to both provide a pleasantaroma, and inhibit microbial growth. The single additive is an essentialoil, derivative, or variation therefrom.

[0008] In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, therehas now been provided a disposable absorbent article containing anessential oil in an amount effective to provide a pleasant aroma andinhibit microbial growth.

[0009] In accordance with a second embodiment of the present inventionthere has been provided a method of making a disposable absorbentarticle containing an essential oil in an amount effective to provide apleasant aroma and inhibit microbial growth comprising:

[0010] a) providing an absorbent material;

[0011] b) providing a liquid permeable material;

[0012] c) providing a liquid impermeable material;

[0013] d) encasing the absorbent material with the liquid permeablematerial and liquid impermeable material; and

[0014] e) contacting at least one of the absorbent material, the liquidpermeable material, the liquid impermeable material, or a combinationthereof with an essential oil.

DETAILED DISCUSSION OF THE INVENTION

[0015] The present invention is directed to a disposable absorbentarticle containing one or more essential oils. Essential oils are highlyconcentrated, volatile liquids originating from a single botanicalsource. A typical essential oil is a complex mixture of alcohols,aldehydes, esters, ketones, oxides, phenols and terpenes.

[0016] Essential oils can be extracted by steam distillation, and othertechniques known in the art, from a variety of plant components,including, but not limited to, roots, leaves, bark, flowers and pulp.The majority of the oil-producing plants are represented by 90 species,and these are derived from about 30 different plant families.

[0017] The present invention provides an absorbent article containingone or more essential oils in an amount effective to provide twofunctions: emit a pleasant aroma, and inhibit microbial growth. Rosemaryoil, clove oil, ginger oil, turmeric oil, chamomile oil, lemon grassoil, thyme oil, achillea oil, thulasi oil, clary sage oil, cedar(hinoki) oil, and derivatives, variations, and mixtures thereof, are allsuitable for use as the essential oil. Synthetic forms of the oilsdescribed above can also be employed in the present invention. Thepreferred essential oil is rosemary oil, which is commercially availablefrom Lorann Oils.

[0018] Malodors attributed to bodily fluids are most likely the resultof bacteria degrading components residing in the bodily fluids. Bacteriacan transform phospholipids into amines and fatty acids, and urea inurine to ammonia. Rosemary oil, for example, is an effective inhibitorof a number of gram positive and gram negative bacteria, such as, butnot limited to Staphylococcus aureus, Eschericia coli, and Pseudomonasaeruginosa. Further to its inhibiting affect on bacteria, rosemary oilalso has an inhibiting affect on a variety of fungi and yeast. Ofparticular interest to feminine hygiene, rosemary oil has been seen toinhibit the growth of Candida albicans.

[0019] In addition to its antimicrobial activity, rosemary oil emits apine-like, camphorous odor. Synergistic odor control is thus achieved inthat rosemary oil both inhibits the microbial growth that degradesbodily fluid components and provides a pleasant aroma.

[0020] The effectiveness of an essential oil as a fragrance may bedetermined by gathering organoleptic data from a panel presented with aseries of absorbent article samples containing increasing concentrationsof essential oil. The samples are then evaluated in a variety ofenvironments, including but not limited to prior to wearing and duringwearing. The panelists are asked a series of questions relating to theirperceptions of the effectiveness of essential oil, at various add-onamounts, to provide an aroma.

[0021] Test methods for determining the amount of essential oilnecessary to inhibit microbial growth include the following: analyticalmethods employed to investigate microbial growth in the presence ofessential oil, and analytical/organoleptic methods employed toinvestigate the level of malodorous degradation products generated bymicrobial activity on cervical and urethral discharge. As used herein,inhibition means substantially maintaining an existing microbe colony bythe prevention of the additional growth of microbes. Inhibition does notrequire the killing of existing microbes or a reduction in size of thecolony, although this is a possible result.

[0022] One test method that may be used to determine the microbialinhibition properties of essential oils is the zone of inhibition test.Another useful test method is the Durham's Fusion test. Those skilled inthe art are familiar with other test methods in the microbiologycommunity that can be used to determine microbial inhibition asdescribed in the present invention.

[0023] In general, the amount of essential oil used in the absorbentarticle is between about 0.1 and about 8 weight percent, more preferablybetween about 0.2 and about 4 weight percent, and most preferablybetween about 0.5 and about 1.5 weight percent. Due to the relativelyhigh volatility of essential oils, additional binder materials ormechanisms are preferably employed to reduce the premature loss of theessential oil once it has been added to the disposable absorbentarticle. (If compounding means are employed, then the level can beadjusted to yield a similar range of add-on available at the surfaceafter migration has occurred.)

[0024] The disposable absorbent article of the present invention cantake a plurality of forms including, but not limited to, sanitarynapkins, tampons, diapers, surgical gowns, bedsheets, incontinenceproducts, and wipes. The present invention is particularly advantageousfor articles designed for managing cervical and urethral discharge. Asused here, and throughout the text, sanitary napkin means any femininehygiene product worn external to the vagina.

[0025] Essential oils can be added to any of the elements used inmanufacturing disposable absorbent articles, during their individualmanufacture or during their configuration into the article itself, oradded to the final product once constructed from the elements.

[0026] One method of incorporating essential oils into the articles isby compounding the essential oils with a base polymer and then forming afilm or fiber from the blend. These films or fibers can be used to formthe elements utilized in the manufacture of disposable absorbentarticles. Additives compounded into polymers, which then migrate atleast partially to the surfaces of the solidified materials, arecommonly referred to as “blooming agents.” Blooming agents are known inthe art to be useful in altering the surface of a material. Arepresentative, non-limiting list of uses of blooming agents, includemaking the surface more lubricious, protecting the polymer fromdegradation, making the surface wettable, and making the surfacereleasable, as used in the molding business. A benefit of compoundingthe essential oil additives with a base polymer, is reducing the amountof additive lost, or lengthening the time elapsed before effectivelevels of essential oils are diminished, because of the migration andtotal separation from the base polymer that is required.

[0027] Another method of adding essential oils to materials used indisposable absorbent articles is to apply the essential oils to afinished product, typically by a coating means. Simplicity andefficiency are two benefits of using coating techniques. Coating meansthat can suitably be used in the present invention include, but are notlimited to dip, slot, spray, melt blown, control coat, and swirl spray.

[0028] Sanitary napkins are commercially available in multiple sizes andshapes, and can vary according to individual needs. Without limitation,the common names for the variety of externally worn sanitary napkinproducts include pantyliners, full-size pads, and ultrathins. Themajority of sanitary napkins are either rectangular or hour-glass shapedto fit in the crotch of undergarments. Most products are attacheddirectly to a user's undergarment, and contact the perineum intimatelywhen the undergarments are pulled up. Alternatively, sanitary napkinscan be attached directly to the body with body adhering adhesives, orheld in place against the body from pressures exerted by the labia.

[0029] Many of the incremental changes that have evolved in thedevelopment of new sanitary napkins are targeted to improve protectionof the products. Compressive forces acting on the pads from bodyposition and activity, can distort the pad in proximity of the vaginalopening, resulting in a limited area for the fluid to contact theproduct when exiting the vaginal opening. Therefore, lateral extensions,commonly referred to as wings, accompany many products in an effort toreduce leakage that can occur due to the reduced area. The lateralextensions also act to keep the sanitary napkin in the location it wasoriginally placed. Lateral extensions can be both flexible and stiff,can contain adhesive or not, can be wrapped around the underside ofundergarments, can attach to the underside of undergarments, or can beheld against or attached to the body. Sanitary napkins typically containtwo lateral extensions, but one of ordinary skill in the art, wouldrecognize that more than two lateral extensions could be used to enhancea product's performance.

[0030] Sanitary napkins typically are packaged loosely into a primarypackage, such as a box or bag, and can have secondary packaging thatallows the consumer to transport individual products and protect themfrom any unwanted environmental affects. The individually packagednapkins are often times folded and then wrapped to facilitate the easeand discretion of transporting the products. Products and methods ofindividually folded and wrapped sanitary products are disclosed in U.S.Pat. Nos. 4,556,146 and 4,917,675; both of which are herein incorporatedby reference.

[0031] Sanitary napkins are typically made from a number of separateelements. A simplistic configuration would include the followingelements: a liquid permeable material representing the body-contactingsurface, a liquid impermeable material representing a barrier as theopposite surface, and an absorbent material or combination of absorbentmaterials contained between the two surface defining materials.Adhesives can be added, with or without the presence of heat andpressure, to adhere the separate elements to one another. Adhesives canalso be applied to the outer surfaces of the product for eitherattaching to undergarments, or directly to the body. A transfer layer ormaterial may optionally be placed between the liquid permeable materialand the absorbent material(s) to improve the transfer of fluid into theabsorbent materials. The foregoing statements are intended to describethe basic elements contained within the majority of sanitary napkinscommercially available; however, the present invention is not limited todisposable absorbent articles comprising the disclosed elements. The artis replete with many additional technologies aimed towards improving theperformance and comfort of sanitary napkins, all of which would notalter the utility of the present invention.

[0032] The liquid permeable material may be a nonwoven fabric such as aspunbonded fabric, a thermal bonded fabric, a resin bonded fabric, andthe like; an apertured polymeric film such as DRI-WEAVE commerciallyavailable from the Procter and Gamble Company, and the like; or anyother suitable covering surface that is capable of allowing fluid topermeate and be comfortably worn against the perineum. The fibrousstructures can be coated with essential oils, or a solution of essentialoils, as the individual fibers are spun, or during, or after a nonwovenstructure is made with the fibers. Polymeric films can be coated withessential oils by any number of methods known by one skilled in the art.The preferred material to be used as the body-contacting surface is anon-woven.

[0033] After menstrual fluid or urine contacts the cover of the napkin,the fluid is transferred from the cover material to the absorbentmaterials for storage. This can include the use of an additionaltransfer layer to facilitate the kinetics of this step. Arepresentative, non-limiting list of materials useful as the absorbentincludes cellulosic fibers, such as wood pulp and cotton pulp; syntheticfibers, such as polyesters and polyolefins; superabsorbent polymers,such as polyacrylic acid, and the like. Another unexpected benefit ofthe present invention is that it has been found that essential oils canbe added to superabsorbent polymers without significant prematureswelling of the polymers. Preferably, the structure includes wood pulpand about 5 to 80% fusible, thermoplastic fibers. As with the covermaterials, essential oils can be added to the absorbent materials duringtheir manufacture.

[0034] To prevent any absorbed fluid from leaking out of the bottom ofthe napkin and onto the body or clothing, a liquid impermeable materialis added as a barrier. Useful barriers include, without limitation,polymeric films or coatings, such as polyolefins (e.g., polyehtylene andpolypropylene), polyvinyls (e.g., polyvinyl acetate, polyvinyl chloride,and poyvinylidene chloride), copolymers (e.g., ethylene vinyl acetate),and blends or laminates of one or more of the above polymers; bodilyfluid repellant structures such as nonwovens, apertured flims, andrepellant fiber layers integrated into the bottom layer of the absorbentmaterials. Preferred barriers include polypropylene and bodily fluidrepellant nonwovens. The most preferred barrier is constructed out ofpolypropylene films. Without limitation, two methods to apply essentialoils to the preferred barrier materials is by externally coating thematerials, or by compounding in essential oils prior to fiber or filmextrusion, after which the essential oils will migrate to the surface ofthe materials.

[0035] Adhesives are often times included in the construction sanitarynapkins to adhere the multiple elements described above. Positioningadhesive can also be applied to the impermeable barrier material,allowing the sanitary napkin to be attached to the crotch ofundergarments. To eliminate gaps between the body and the sanitarynapkin, there has also been innovations disclosing methods of usingadhesives on portions of the liquid permeable surface for attaching thenapkins directly to the perineum. A direct body adhering sanitary napkinis disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,658,270, herein incorporated byreference. Adhesives are excellent carriers for essential oils. Theadditive can readily be dispersed in many adhesive types, such as hotmelts and warm melts. Using adhesives as a carrier can improve theadd-on level and placement of essential oils. The adhesives also serveas binder material that can reduce the amount of essential oils lostprior to use. A representative, non-limiting list of materials useful aseither construction or positioning adhesives includes acrylics, starchbased hot melts, adhesives based on block copolymers of vinyl aromatichyrdocarbon and one or more conjugated diene or hyrogenated aliphaticblocks, polylactic acids, hot melts based polyolefins such as amorphouspoly alpha olefins which may consist of one or more of the followingmonomers: propylene, ehtylene, butene, and hexene; hot melts based onlow density polyethylene or low density polyethylene copolymersincluding ethylene vinyl acetate, methyl acrylate, n-butyl acrylate, andacrylic acid. Typical positioning adhesives that are well known in theart are based styrenic block copolymers as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos.5,149,741; 5,143,968; and 5,057,571.

[0036] It is also possible for the material used for wrapping theindividual products to contain essential oils. Typically the wrappingmaterial is constructed with either polyolefin films, such aspolypropylene, or with a form of paper. One method of utilizing thewrapping material to apply essential oils to the napkin, is to coat thepaper or polymeric film with known techniques, such as spraying, slotcoating, or extrusion. The essential oils can then be transferred ormigrate to the napkin itself during the packaging process or anytimeprior to the consumer opening the individually packaged product.

[0037] The disclosure thus far has focused on sanitary napkins, themultitude of elemental features that can be included in theirconstruction, and methods of adding essential oils to one or more of theindividual elements. The essential oils can be added to sanitary napkinsduring their manufacture, or to the final product. Adding the essentialoils during the article manufacture is the most preferred method ofincorporation of the present invention. This approach can beaccomplished through a number of techniques, including but not limitedto, spraying, slot coating, transfer coating, solid gravimetericfeeders, via positioning adhesives and construction adhesives, and dipcoating. Preferably, essential oils are applied by spraying onto thesanitary napkin during its manufacture.

[0038] Essential oils can also be added to tampons, and other internallyworn disposable absorbent articles. Consistent with the techniques forincorporating essential oils into externally worn articles, there aremultiple methods suitable for the present invention, including, but notlimited to adding essential oils to an element used to manufacturetampons, adding essential oils to a tampon during its manufacture, andadding essential oils to the tampon after its manufacture. The majorityof tampons are constructed of absorbent fibers, such as viscose rayonand cotton, and the like. The tampons may optionally have a covermaterial on the outside surface to provide ease of insertion andremoval, and also to reduce fiber sloughing during use in the vaginalcanal. A representative, non-limiting list of materials useful as thecover includes apertured polymeric films, nonwovens constructed frompolyester fibers, polyolefin fibers, bicomponent fibers, and the like;and other materials that will allow fluid to pass through and into theabsorbent material contained by the cover. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,294,253 and4,642,108 disclose tampon constructions and processes of manufacture.

[0039] Preferably, essential oils would be added to the tampon covermaterial. The technique for adding the essential oils to the cover couldbe any known in the art, such as dip, slot, spray, melt blown, controlcoat, and swirl spray.

[0040] Another disposable absorbent article the present invention isappropriate for is wipes or towelettes. Wipes are typically in the formof a fibrous web constructed from a single layer of fibers, or multiplelayers. The fibers can be woven or non-woven in nature. Preferably theconstruction is a nonwoven made from spunbound, meltblown, orcombination thereof. A representative, non-limiting list of materialsuseful in manufacturing the non-wovens is polyolefins, polyesters,acrylics, and cotton. Wipes are used for numerous fluid managementpurposes, including, but not limited to during baby diaper changes,during menses management article changes, after urination, after a bowelmovement, and after sexual intercourse. Those of ordinary skill in theart would readily appreciate that a wipe containing an effective amountof essential oil to provide a pleasant aroma and inhibit microbialgrowth, would be beneficial for the above purposes.

EXAMPLES

[0041] In the following examples, a series of essential oils weresubjected to the zone of inhibition test with a variety of bacteria asfollows. The selected bacterium, as shown in Table 1 below, wasuniformly added to a medium such as blood or nutrient agar. An essentialoil was added to a small stainless steel cylinder embedded in the agar,and incubated overnight. The size of the bacteria-free zones around thecylinders were then measured. Typically, multiple cylinders, withvarying levels of the agent, were used. Table 1 shows the results for anumber of essential oils when tested with various bacteria testcultures. TABLE 1 Zone of Inhibition Zone of Inhibition, millimeters Ps.Str. Essential S. aureus E. coli aeruginosa faecalis C. albicans Oiltype, ATCC ATCC ATCC ATCC ATCC 0.1 ml. 6538 8739 9027 7080 10231Rosemary 36 24 18 23 20 Clove bud 30 21 17 17 19 Ginger 16 12 12 14 10Thulasi 27 20 16 17 20 Turmeric 21 14 15 13  9 Lemon 25 18 17 18 19grass

[0042] A series of essential oils were also subjected to the Durham'sfusion tube test using a variety of bacteria. The tests were conductedas follows. Agar slants were innoculated with the desired culture, and ameasured amount of hexane extracted essential oil (i.e., 0.1 ml) wasplaced in a sterile Durham's Fusion tube (2 mm inner diameter). TheDurham's tube was introduced to the agar slant and incubated at a 30°angle such that the vapors emerging from the tube covered the surface ofthe agar slant.

[0043] Table 2 shows the percent inhibition of the volatile component ofselected essential oils after 48 hours of residence in the innoculatedagar slant.

[0044] Tables 3 and 4 show the minimum inhibitory concentrations forHinoki Oil and Achillea Oil, using the Durham's fusion tube method.TABLE 2 Durham's Fusion Test Inhibition after 48 hours Ps. Str.Essential S. aureus E. coli aeruginosa faecalis C. albicans Oil type,ATCC ATCC ATCC ATCC ATCC 0.1 ml. 6538 8739 9027 7080 10231 Rosemary ++++— — ++++ ++ Clove bud — — — — — Ginger — — — + + Thulasi — — — — —Turmeric — — — — — Lemon grass — — — — — Thyme ++ + — Not — tested

[0045] TABLE 3 Hinoki Oil: Minimum Inhibition Concentrations Ps.aeruginosa Proteus S. aureus C. albicans L. acidophillus P. mirabilis E.coli Conc., ppm ATCC 9027 vulgaris ATCC 6538 ATCC 10231 ATCC 4356 ATCC29906 ATCC 8739  400 + + + + + + +  600 + + + + + + +  800 + + + + + + +1000 + + − + − + + 1100 + + − + − + + 1200 + + − + − + + 1600 + + − +− + + 1800 + + − + − + + 2000 + + − + − + + 2400 − − − + − − + 2600 − −− + − − + 2800 − − − + − − + 3000 − − − + − − +

[0046] TABLE 4 Achillea Oil: Minimum Inhibition Concentrations Ps.aeruginosa Proteus S. aureus C. albicans L. acidophillus P. mirabilis E.coli Conc., ppm ATCC 9027 vulgaris ATCC 6538 ATCC 10231 ATCC 4356 ATCC29906 ATCC 8739  400 + + + + + + +  600 + + + + + + +  800 + + + + + + +1000 + + + + + + + 1100 + + − + − + + 1200 + + − + − + + 1600 + + − +− + + 1800 + + − + − + + 2000 + + − + − + + 2400 + + − + − + + 2600 + +− + − − + 2800 + − − + − − + 3000 + − − + − − +

What is claimed is:
 1. A disposable absorbent article containing aneffective amount of essential oil to provide an aroma and inhibitmicrobial growth.
 2. The disposable absorbent article of claim 1 whereinthe essential oil is rosemary oil.
 3. The disposable absorbent articleof claim 1 wherein the amount of essential oil is from about 0.1 toabout 8.0 weight percent.
 4. The disposable absorbent article of claim 1wherein essential oil is added to the disposable absorbent articleduring its manufacture.
 5. The disposable absorbent article of claim 1wherein the article is defined to be sanitary napkins, tampons, orwipes.
 6. The disposable absorbent article of claim 1 wherein any one ofthe elements used in making the article is combined with essential oilprior to manufacturing the disposable absorbent article.
 7. Thedisposable absorbent article of claim 6 wherein the essential oil iscontained within adhesives used to adhere a plurality of elements makingup the article.
 8. The disposable absorbent article of claim 6 whereinthe essential oil is contained within adhesives used to attach thearticle to undergarments.
 9. The disposable absorbent article of claim 6wherein the essential oil is contained within adhesives used to adherethe article directly to a user's body.
 10. A disposable absorbentarticle contained with wrapping material, wherein the wrapping materialcontains and effective amount of essential oil to provide an aroma andinhibit microbial growth.
 11. The disposable absorbent article of claim10 wherein the amount of essential oil is from about 0.1 to about 8.0weight percent.
 12. A method of making a disposable absorbent articlecomprising the following steps: a) providing an absorbent material, b)providing a liquid permeable material, c) providing a liquid impermeablematerial, d) encasing the absorbent material with the liquid permeablematerial and liquid impermeable material; and e) contacting at least oneof the absorbent material, the liquid permeable material, the liquidimpermeable material, or a combination thereof with an effective amountof essential oil to provide an aroma and inhibit microbial growth. 13.The method of claim 12 wherein the process of contacting any one of saidmaterials with essential oil is selected from the group consisting ofdip, slot, spray, roll, and swirl.
 14. The method of claim 12 whereinthe amount of essential oil is from about 0.1 to about 8.0 weightpercent.
 15. The method of claim 12 further comprising the step ofadhering the absorbent material to the liquid permeable material, or theabsorbent material to the liquid impermeable layer with adhesives. 16.The method of claim 15 wherein said essential oil is found in theadhesives, in an amount effective to provide an aroma and inhibitmicrobial growth.
 17. The method of claim 12 wherein the absorbentmaterial contains superabsorbents.
 18. The method of claim 17 whereinsaid essential oil is found in the superabsorbents, in an amounteffective to provide an aroma and inhibit microbial growth.